Love's Not Easy
by SuperNaturalGH
Summary: Liason getting divorced...or are they?
1. Chapter 1

Standing in the doorway of his half empty penthouse, Jason Morgan forces himself to take a deep breath before entering his home, demanding the memories to stay at bay. Nothing good would come of that, of letting the memories flood his mind and seep into his heart, nothing good at all. She made her decision and he accepted it. There was no use looking back now.

Trudging upstairs to his bedroom, he works on autopilot, disrobing before working his way through a quick shower and right into his Carly approved attire. Tonight's his best friend's birthday, he had to be there, it was only right. In spite of the hell that has become his life, Jason owed it to Sonny to make an brief appearance. One of the many things he learnt from her.

Facing his reflection in the full length mirror, he forces himself to take in another deep breath, this time to steady his nerves. For a moment, just a brief moment, he felt like she would walk through the door and insist to do his tie. No matter how many times he has done it before in his life, she'd insist that he needed her to do it for him. And he'd let her.

Shaking his head abruptly, Jason turns away from the mirror, snatching up his suit jacket before he slams his bedroom door shut. He will not succumb to this. He refuses to let her affect him like this when she's wasn't even there. They're not a part of each other's lives anymore and he refuses to let her cloud his mind for a moment longer.

Revving his engine at a red light, his gaze is brought to the wedding band that still rests on his left ring finger, a constant reminder of all he had with her and all he lost. Balancing the bike, he brings his other hand over the wedding band, forming his fingers in a way to remove the trinket, but his fingers don't clasp and the ring remains on his finger. He was just that pathetic.

Forcing his gaze away from the mocking accessory, he slams his gas petal once the light turns green, focusing on the path ahead of him. If he can just keep his mind on his best friend's birthday, the rest will just fall away, even if only for tonight. Wit the way his thoughts have been lately, he'll take whatever diversion he can take claim to.

* * *

Soaking in her bathtub, surrounded by the soft scented bubbles of her favorite soap, Elizabeth Morgan stares at her wedding band that still rests upon her left ring finger. Many times she has tried to remove the mocking item from her hand, but every time she fails just as miserably as the time before. She couldn't part with it. No matter what her friends tell her, she could not remove the ring from her finger.

Removing her ring meant that it was really over. All the years they had fought to be together, all the obstacles that they had to overcome, all of it would be for nothing. The reality would sink in, the pain and loss would be undeniable, and she would be forced to think of a future without her husband. All the love that they had shared, all the ups and downs, everything would become her past. Nothing but memories of a love once felt.

"You better have a damn good reason why you're not at Sonny's party yet." Carly Corinthos's voice bellowed through her bedroom before the bathroom door swung open. "Seriously?! You're still taking a bath?"

"Carly!" Elizabeth snaps, growing tired of the woman's constant need to pull her out of her apartment. "I told you that I'm not going."

"Wrong!" she snatches the bathrobe off the sink, tossing it at Elizabeth's face. "Get up! You are going to Sonny's party even if I have to drag your ass there butt naked."

"Remember how I wanted us to be friends for Jason's sake?" Elizabeth counters, rising up out of the bathtub as she slid into her robe. "I take it back. I don't want to be friends with you anymore."

"Too late." Carly replies as she walks into the bedroom to grab her something to wear. "Once we're friends, there's no getting rid of me. You should know that better than anyone."

"Carly, stop!" Elizabeth practically shouts, stopping her from rummaging through the closet. "I can't go."

"Give me one good reason."

"Jason's going to be there."

"That's exactly the reason why you should go." Carly counters, a sly smirk on her face. "Now quit it with the childish antics and get dressed before I'm late for my husband's party."

"Fine." Elizabeth sighs before holding out her hand. "Give me the damn dress."

Against her better judgement, Elizabeth snatches the dress from Carly's hands before making her way back into the bathroom to get dressed. As much as she has grown used to Carly's constant nosy habits, Elizabeth will never get used to the woman's need to get her back together with Jason. After all the years of trying to tear them apart, she picks now of all times to decide that she was wrong. Go figure.

Finally dressed and presentable, to Carly's standards, Elizabeth forces herself to keep up with Carly as she drags her out of the house and into the waiting car. This had to be the worst mistake of the night, the absolute worst idea that Carly has come up with this week alone, yet she was still going along with it. So, in retrospect, who's the real lunatic? Carly for making her go somewhere Jason will be or her dumbass for going along with it?

* * *

Party underway, all guests in attendance, Sonny Corinthos looks around with a pleased dimpled smile on his face, thankful that all who were invited managed to make it to the celebration. Glancing around for his wife, he finds her in what looked like a heated argument between her and Elizabeth. Of course, it wasn't exactly unprecedented, especially not recently.

Turning away from their back and forth bickering, he searches out his best friend, finding him exactly where he thought he'd be. At the bar. With a low chuckle to himself, he makes his way through the crowd, ordering up one of the most expensive glasses of scotch before turning his inquiring gaze to the man beside him.

"Don't." Jason states beneath his breath before he downs the last of his beer.

"Don't what?" Sonny questions with innocence, use the full force of his dimpled grin to emphasis it.

"Playing stupid doesn't become you, Sonny." Jason turns away from the bar to look at him. "We're bound to run into each other. Its not exactly New York City."

"Still..." Sonny tilts his head questioningly.

"You know what, I'm gonna get some air." Jason says before his best friend could voice anything further. "Even hint at my failed marriage when I get back and I'm gone. Understood?"

Before Sonny could think to respond or retort, he started walking away, making his way to the door. Just as he was about to pull it open, as if by instinct, he turns his gaze to his wife, meeting her gaze when she looks over at him. Strange how, even with them being separated, they were still just as connected as ever. Anger flooding him when she forces herself to look away, Jason slams the door open before leaving the building.

"You see that, Carly?" Elizabeth gestures to the door as it closes behind Jason. "That's why I never should have come here."

"Once again, muffin face, you couldn't be more wrong." Carly sighs, gesturing to the door. "That's exactly the reason why you coming here was a good idea."

"You're insane."

"And you two are worse than me and Sonny ever were." she counters with anger, growing tired of this foolish battle between husband and wife. "One disagreement and you take it so damn personally."

"Disagreement?" Elizabeth looked at her disbelievingly. "So, that's what you're calling it?"

"Disagreement, fight, whatever the hell you want to call it, you both are still two stubborn idiots that don't know when to give in." Carly didn't care anymore, she's done playing subtle. Not that she was any good at it to begin with. "Jason did what he thought was necessary and you, well, you were you."

"You know what, I'm out of here."

"Not so fast, runaway wife." Carly grabs her arm, stopping her from moving towards the door. "You need to accept that you were both wrong. Him for shutting you out and you for not trusting him."

"Goodbye, Carly." Elizabeth yanks her arm free of her grasp before heading to the door. "Tell Sonny I left."

"You know I'm right!" Carly shouted after her. "You can fight it as much as you want, but deep down you know that I'm right!"

The worst part of it for Elizabeth was that she couldn't contradict that. Carly's right. And when Carly's right about anything, you know you've screwed up worse than you had ever thought possible. Refusing to admit that, though, Elizabeth makes her way out of the club, deciding that going home was the safest move for her tonight. Of course, she got as far as the parking lot before she realized that she didn't drive there.

"Leaving?" her husband's voice is plain as he speaks to her, causing her to turn and look at him.

"Trying to." she admits, remaining where she is, a good distance away from him. "It would be a lot easier if Carly hadn't driven me here."

"The bike's over there." Jason could hear the words coming from his mouth before his brain could catch up. "I can drop you home, if you want."

"I don't." she replies, knowing just how badly she wanted to be on the back of his bike, but also knowing just how bad of an idea that was. "I'll get home on my own."

"So that's what we've become?" Jason questions her with pure irritation. "Have we really come to a place where I can't even drop you home?"

"I'm not your problem anymore." she turns away from him to look out at the parking lot. "We're getting divorced. Any obligation that you may have had in regard to me no longer matters."

"You're still my wife." Jason snaps, forcing her to look at him. "I get to care about your safety and well being if I want!"

"Jason, stop."

"Stop what?" he counters, staring deeply into her eyes. "Stop caring about you? Stop loving you? Stop wishing that I could wake up from this twisted nightmare to find you laying beside me in bed? You're better off asking me to stop breathing."

"I'm not doing this with you." her voice is firm, unwavering, despite her inner turmoil. "We're getting divorced. After which, you and I will go our separate ways, free to move on as we please."

"You see, your mouth is saying all the right things, but your eyes..." he shakes his head. "...your eyes give you away. They always have."

"Jason...stop"

"Look me in the eye and tell me that you're not in love with me anymore." Jason insists, refusing to allow her to walk away, a fire igniting in him that he had thought was dead. "That you don't miss me the very second that you wake up in the morning and find that I'm not laying there beside you. That you don't ache for me to hold you as you fall asleep every night! Look me in the eye and swear to me that you really want this to be over...that you really want to divorce me. Do that and I'll give you what you want. I'll sign the divorce papers and you'll never have to see me again for as long as you live."

"Goodbye, Jason."


	2. Chapter 2

Bursting through his penthouse door, Jason's anger hits an all time high as he looks around at the half empty penthouse, his heart pounding faster and faster as he remembers the way things used to be. Like his wedding band that rests on his finger, the entire place mocks him, as if his failures were manifesting before his eyes, taunting him.

His desk. God, his desk! How many late nights had they spent making love to each other on that thing after he came home from one of his many assignments! How many times had she said she loved him, that he would always have her heart. Latching his hands onto it, Jason tosses the offending furniture on its side, not giving a care to the items that had been sitting atop of it. The anger has taken hold of him and all he could see was the red flash of rage.

The coffee table. Their sorry excuse for a dining table! How many meals had they shared at that pathetic thing? Talking of their days and all the complications that the people from their lives caused. How many romantic dinners had they shared as they reminded each other of all the reasons they still fought to be together? How many soft kisses had they shared as he had sat on that during their weekly bare all conversations?

Lifting it into the air, he throws it at the wall with such brute strength, sending a loud crashing sound to ring through the penthouse. The memories were just too much! So much they had shared, so much they had fought for, so much they had left to fight for! How could she just turn her back on that?! How could she do this to him? To THEM! How could she?

Couldn't she see that everything he ever did was for her? Couldn't she understand that he would never do anything to hurt her? That if he did it, there was no other way, no other choice for him to make?! It wasn't like he had plotted to keep it from her! It wasn't like he had sat at his desk, thinking of all the choices he had to make, and then choosing the one that would hurt her the most! He didn't have another choice!

"Drop that pool stick!" Carly's voice bellowed through the penthouse as he was about to smash his favorite pool stick to pieces against his pool table. "Don't make me hurt you, Jason!"

"Go away, Carly." he says with annoyance, setting the pool stick down despite his protest. "I don't have the patience to deal with you right now."

"Well, too freaking bad." Carly counters, shutting the door firmly behind her before locking. "Because I'm not going anywhere until I've had my say."

"Carly..."

"You know me, Jase, there's no use fighting it." Carly cuts him off before he can protest further. "So, if you want to get rid of me like I know you do, I suggest you sit your ass down and listen to what I have to say."

Begrudgingly, Jason plops down onto the couch, resisting the urge to flip the item on its side. It, like the desk, held many passion filled moments between him and his wife. In truth, even if he didn't understand it, the couch was his wife's favorite piece of furniture that resides within their home. She had even insisted that it was the only thing that would never leave their place, no matter what changes they had decided to make to their place. Looking at Carly, he braces himself for the lecture that he was about to endure.

* * *

Slowly making her way into her house after the longest walk she has ever had to endure in a while, Elizabeth leans against her front door, a deep heartbroken sigh escaping her lips as she does. It had taken everything she had in her to walk away from him, to say goodbye while he was almost begging her to stay. In spite of how she felt, she knew that it would be futile to give into his pleas.

It was the same song and dance. They'd want to try, swearing that they could get it right, then something would happen that'll prove they just weren't meant to be together. That they were just too different, their worlds completely opposite from the other, ending with them in pain and realizing that they were just fooling themselves. It would never work.

So, why, for the life of her, couldn't she put the final nail in their marriage? Why couldn't she remove her wedding band and accept that their lives would never be in sync like they had been the night they got married? Glancing down at her wedding band, the answer hits her like a ton of bricks. The only reason that she could never truly let go. She's in love with him. She always has been, she always will be.

No amount of logic will ever change that because love is not logic. Love is unpredictable, uncontrollable, and completely invincible. If it were anything else other than that, it wouldn't be love. So, no matter how logical it seemed for them to remain out of each other's lives, no matter how understandable it would be for her to just cast away her wedding ring like old jewelry, she couldn't do it.

"Elizabeth, open up." the birthday man himself voices from the other side of her door after a brief knock. "Its Sonny."

Rubbing her lips together as she takes a deep breath in, Elizabeth forces herself to move away from her front door, standing up straight as she prepares to open the door to him. Getting home, all she wanted to do was crawl into bed and forget this night ever happened, but somehow she knew that she wouldn't get that much.

"Sonny." she says in greeting when she comes face to face with him. "Is your party over already?"

"Forget about my party." he says seriously, showing through his eyes what he was intending to do. "You and I need to talk."

"About what?"

"You know what." he counters with ease, gesturing at her living room. "You gonna let me in?"

Stepping aside, knowing there was no point in telling him to go home, Elizabeth waits long enough for Sonny to walk inside before shutting the door firmly. Though he has been keeping his distance with her, not wanting to make an already stressful situation worse, she knew it wouldn't last forever. Sonny just wasn't the sit back and watch type, he was a lot like Carly in that way.

"Do we really have to do this right now?" Elizabeth finds herself asking, knowing that there was no getting around it, but wishing there was.

"Yes, we really have to do this." Sonny meets her eyes, conviction surging through his. "Right now."

Accepting that she wouldn't be getting any sleep until she hears him out, Elizabeth moves towards her couch, slowly lowering herself down onto it before bracing herself for the lecture she was undoubtedly about to endure. In the back of her mind, she allows herself to feel the emptiness sitting on that couch elicited. Only one couch would do for her, too bad that couch still resides in the penthouse. What she wouldn't do to have that couch right now.

* * *

Staring at him as he sits completely still, face void of emotion, Carly would be lying if that look didn't shake her to her core. She had her fair share of moments when she would have been happy to see this day come. Where she could look Jason in the face and say a big fat I TOLD YOU SO, but not today. Not since she gave Elizabeth half a chance before quickly becoming her best friend.

The old Carly would have relished in this moment, but the woman she is now is overcome with a feeling of being broken. She couldn't stand to see either of them hurting like this. Knowing both sides of this crazy situation, she knew that they were both right to feel the way they do, but that they were also both wrong. What fight between a couple in love isn't like that? Both right and wrong at the same time.

"Obviously you know how stupid your wife is being, so I don't have to point that out." Carly says as her opening to her lecture. "I mean, she has to be stupid to..."

"Finish that sentence and you'll be seeing the other side of my door real soon." Jason snaps, call it instinct or whatever, but he still couldn't bear to hear her speak negative of Elizabeth. "Tear into me if that's what you want, but you leave Elizabeth alone. She had her reasons for walking away. None of which you have any right to judge on."

"You see that?" Carly points at him with conviction. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you sounded like a protective husband."

"I am a protective husband." he states irritably, realizing what she was trying to get at. "No legal document will change that. I will always be her husband and she'll always be my wife."

"Then why are you two being so stupid?" she questions with seriousness. "You both made mistakes, but that's life! Why won't you fight for your wife?"

"This is what she wants." Jason's heart aches as he speaks, but he knew that wouldn't stop until he had her back. "No matter what has changed between us, her happiness will always come first."

"You think she's happy?" Carly scoffs, shaking her head at him. "She's the farthest thing from happy a woman can get."

"You think I don't know that?" Jason knew that better than anyone, but what was there left for him to do? "As unhappy as she is, she hurts worse when I try to fight for her. I refuse to do that to her anymore."

"Forget this!" she snaps, tired of being subtle, hating that she even tried to play it the nice way. "If you two won't tell each other the truth, I'll do it for you! Brace yourself for this because, trust me, it'll knock you on your ass."

Jason listens as Carly lays into him about all the things that happened while he was keeping his distance from his wife for her safety. She tells him about all the late nights Elizabeth had stayed awake, waiting for him, before she finally gives into the fatigue, waking up the next day to find his side of the bed cold. Jason nowhere in sight. All the meals she spent alone.

"I know all of this!" Jason practically shouts when she starts to describe how lonely Elizabeth had been during that time. "If your goal is to piss me off, you're doing a damn good job at it, Carly!"

"I was simply establishing her state of mind during that time." Carly defends, smiling sadly as she stares into his eyes. "Because, I assure you, you have no idea about this next part."

"Spit it out already."

"While you were doing everything you could to protect your wife, your sister and that idiot boyfriend of hers, Nikolas, were doing everything they could to plant doubt in Elizabeth's mind."

"What?" the word slips from his mouth like a ten ton brick. Anger, hatred, and a full on threat behind that simple word.

"Every chance they got, they questioned your fidelity. Asking her how well she really knew you." Carly watches as the rage flares back up in his eyes. "Of course, it didn't help that she found your t-shirt with lipstick on the collar."

"I'm gonna kill them."

Jason couldn't believe that his sister would pull such pathetic stunts with his wife, Nikolas he could believe, but not his sister. He trusted her so completely, poured his heart out to her so freely, gave her all he had to give and more. To find out that she has done this, that she played a part in the way his marriage was ending, Jason saw nothing but red. Anger. Betrayal. Disgust.

* * *

Elizabeth listening to Sonny, giving him the respect that he deserved, but she was close to smacking Sonny upside the head if he dropped another insult in her husband's direction. She knows all the reasons why she's angry with Jason, she knows all the things that he has done to warrant her reaction. Sonny, on the other hand, had no room to judge.

Of course, anything she was about to say was halted by Sonny's explanation on why Jason handled things the way he did. She shouldn't be so surprised that her husband would act like that, but she was. She was also surprised to find that Sonny's "sister" had posed such a huge threat to her. Could she have really been that blind to the blonde's true intentions?

"That still doesn't excuse what he did!"

"No, maybe not." Sonny agrees, shaking his head as he realizes he's getting to her. "But you have to admit that you should have trusted him more."

"Maybe." she concedes, taking a deep breath before shaking her head. "Which is exactly why we would never work. There's just too much bad between us to think that anything good could really last."

"What do you mean?"

"First with Lucky...how I treated Jason...the way that ended..." she sighs, forcing herself to not look back on that time. "Then with Courtney...how easy it had been for the situation to take on a life of its own...for it to come between us..."

"You love him don't you?" Sonny cuts her off, forcing her to stay on point. "You're still in love with Jason, right?"

"Of course I am."

"Then everything else doesn't matter." Sonny insists, trying to get her to see reason. "Everything that your friends ever said to you...everything that happened because of the situation with Courtney...nothing matters but that."

"Love doesn't solve everything."

"But it does make it worth it." Sonny kneels down in front of her, staring into her eyes seriously. "I'm not saying it'll be easy, love wouldn't be love if it was, but it is worth fighting for."

"Sonny..."

"If you can look me in the eyes and tell me that you really want a future without Jason, I'll leave you be." Sonny counters, placing one hand on either side of her, keeping her from moving away. "Look me in the eyes and tell me that everything you had with Jason, all the love you still feel for him...tell me none of it matters to you. Tell me that Jason means nothing to you anymore and I'm gone."

Silence. That's about all that can be heard from Elizabeth as she stares at Sonny with tears in her eyes, unable to form the words that he practically dared her to speak. Did she really want a future without Jason? No, never. Not on her life. Jason meaning nothing to her? Their love meaning nothing? That's so absurd, it didn't warrant a retort. But...was love really enough to get past all their problems? All the problems that would undoubtedly manifest itself in the future? Were they really worth it?

"If there's a chance, no matter how small, that you and Jason could work...that your marriage can be saved..." Sonny lifts her gaze to meet his. "...don't you think you owe it to yourselves to fight for it? As long as you love each other, you have to believe there will always be a way to work it out."


	3. Chapter 3

Despite the many protests from Sonny and Carly alike, husband and wife stand face to face, preparing to sign their divorce papers. Putting an end to their marriage, once and for all. Maybe it was mere coincidence, maybe it was something more, but both spouses are dressed in full black, fitting for what they were about to do.

"I'm sorry." he voices, breaking the silence that had fallen over them for some time. "For shutting you out...for everything I did. If I had any other options, I hope you know I would have made a different choice."

"I'm sorry, too...for everything." she replies, taking in a deep shaky breath, pen resting in her hand. "I really wished that things between us could have been different. I honestly thought we could finally get it right."

"So did I." Jason glances down at the papers, the palms of his hands sweating at the thought of finally signing the legal documents before him. "Elizabeth?"

"Yeah?" she whispers, watching as he turns his eyes to her, pain evident in his eyes. "Don't tell me you're backing out...we need to do this, Jason."

"I know, okay? I know." he sighs, dropping the pen down on the table. "But not like this...not here."

"If not here then where?" she counters, barely holding it together as it was. "This is as good a place as any."

"The place we got married." Jason mutters, tapping his fingers against his leg. "Its where our marriage started...its where it should end."

"Fine." she agrees to give him this much, it was the least she could do. "Lets go."

Elizabeth walks out of the apartment leaving Jason to follow behind her. Silence falls over them until they get to the driveway, a decision to be made on their mode of transportation. Elizabeth could practically see his wheels turning, finding a way to get her on the back of his bike, but she couldn't take that. She just wouldn't be able to handle it.

"No." she voices, shaking her head as she steps towards her car. "Not your bike."

"Elizabeth..."

"No, Jason." she says adamantly. "I can't...I just...I just can't."

"Please." he says, walking over to her, meeting her eye. "You said it yourself...once we sign that paper, its over."

"I can't get on your bike." she whispers, tears welling up in her eyes. "Please...please don't make me."

"Give me one good reason why not."

"If I get on that bike with you...if I allow myself to remember how good it felt to be free..." Elizabeth shakes her head, forcing the memories to stay at bay. "Jason, I just might never want to get off again."

"Is that so bad?" he counters, taking her hands in his, hating that he was making her cry again. "This is our last chance to ride together...please...I need this."

Forcing herself to shake her head, Elizabeth allows him to guide her towards his bike, taking the helmet with a shaky hand before strapping it on. This was a horrible idea, worse than allowing Carly to take her to Sonny's birthday, a lot worse, but she couldn't deny him anything right now. Maybe it was selfish, but she just wanted a little more time with him. A little more time before she has to say goodbye.

Together they straddle the bike with one destination in mind, the spot they got married. Black Stone Canyon. So many memories tied to that place, good and bad alike, but still their memories. Memories neither of them would trade for the world. Not a single memory to date.

"Okay." she says as the stand in the middle of the bridge. "We're here...in the very spot we got married...its time to sign the papers."

"Do you remember the night I gave you that boxing lesson?" Jason questions, slowly walking over to the railing, glancing over at the abyss. "The very first lesson?"

"Jason, what are you doing?"

"I didn't know what else to do...I just wanted to make you smile...I wanted to see you feel alive again." Jason turns to look at her. "I would have done anything to accomplish that. I would've taken you bar fighting if I thought it would work."

"Jason..." she whispers, tears escaping her eyes to slide down her cheeks. "...stop."

"From the very moment I saved you at Jake's, all I ever wanted was to make you smile." Jason turns to face her. "All I wanted was to ensure that you never had a reason to cry...that you were always happy."

"No one's always happy." Elizabeth takes in a shaky breath, unable to believe that she was really playing into this.

"I knew that...I know that." Jason assures, slipping his hands into his pockets. "Didn't stop me from trying, though."

"Jason...please." Elizabeth pulls out the divorce documents, settling it against the bridge railing. "Sign it."

"I will, but first...I want you to know something." Jason turns her to face him, staring into her eyes. "What I said on our wedding day...in this very spot...it still holds true. It will always hold true."

_"Elizabeth, if this doesn't work out, if our lives pull us in two different directions, I want you to remember one thing." Jason had said as they stood alone on the bridge, finally husband and wife. "My heart will always be yours...I will always love you. If there ever comes a time that you need me, I will always be there for you. I'll never turn you away."_

_"What if we break up because I cheated on you or something?" Elizabeth questioned, playing along with his need to voice his feelings. "Would you still be there for me then?"_

_"Even then." he said with conviction. "If you believe anything, believe this...I'll always be the person you can count on. No matter what happens, no matter what circumstances tear us apart, I'll always be here for you. Trust that."_

"I always thought it was strange that you'd talk about that right after we got married." Elizabeth concedes, shaking her head at the memory. "I mean, who talks about the end when the marriage had only begun?"

"I know." he smiles slightly, knowing how strange it had been, but needing her to know it from the start. "Elizabeth, you and I...we've been through a lot. No matter what will come of us from here...we'll always be a part of each other. There's no changing that."

"You're right." she agrees, knowing that there really wasn't any getting around that, they've been through too much together to ever really be done with the other. "We'll always be a part of each other. Just...not together."

Having said all he could think to say without hurting her further, Jason accepts what he has to do, standing beside her as they sign the divorce papers together. It would be a long time before he'll be able to finally move past the hurt, but he's willing to suffer through it if it meant making her happy. Maybe once she's away from him, away from everything, she'll begin to live again.

The ride back to her apartment was long and painful, knowing that he would never have her ride with him again, that it was really over. He wanted to tell her that he knew about his sister's part in them ending, but he couldn't. It didn't matter by this point. The damage was done, there was no turning back.

Walking her up the pathway to her front door, needing to make sure she got in safely, Jason waits for her to dig her keys out of her pocket. He could see her shaking with emotion, but the ever stubborn look of strength remains on her face. She was nothing if not stubbornly consistent in always wanting to seem stronger than she is.

"Elizabeth?" he whispers softly as she just stands in front of the door, keys in her hand, simply staring at the handle. "You okay?"

"No." she replies, shaking her head. "I'm not okay...I can't even walk into my own apartment."

"Why not?"

"Because...because it makes it real." she turns to him, her tears falling like rain. "If I walk into that apartment with our divorce papers signed...its just too real, Jason. Its just too much."

"I thought this is what you wanted?" he counters, looking at her intently. "Have you changed your mind?"

"I don't know...maybe?" she shakes her head. "You were right, Jason. About everything...about wanting you there when I wake up...when I go to sleep. I miss you all the time...every single day."

"I miss you, too."

"But is it enough?" she questions, staring into his eyes. "Is loving each other really enough to think that we can make it work?"

"I don't know." he admits, taking her hands into his. "But if its this hard to say goodbye...maybe its not the right thing to do."

"I never want to hurt you."

"I hurt without you." he points out, tears of his own falling down his cheeks. "I'm not saying it'll be easy...I'm not saying we won't fight again...but I honestly believe we deserve another chance. Will you take that chance on me?"

"Yeah." she whispers, staring into his eyes. "I'm willing to give it one last try."

"You know I love you, right?"

"I love you, too."


End file.
